Who we are

In March 2010, members from the EPP, S&D, ALDE, Greens/EFA and ECR groups founded the "Friends of Turkey" group in the European Parliament. Mr Alojz Peterle (EPP) was elected as chairman of the group.
The group was successfully re-launched in September 2014. Artis Pabriks (EPP) and Ismail Ertug (S&D) became the new co-chairs.

Main purpose

The main objective of the informal group is to closely monitor EU accession negotiations with Turkey from a critical but constructive approach. Friends of Turkey is conceived as a platform for discussion where MEPs can contribute to the improvement of EU-Turkey relations.

What we do

As a cross-party informal group, Friends of Turkey has successfully positioned itself at the core of the debate on EU-Turkey negotiations. The group organizes formal and informal meetings with European and Turkish officials and it has served as a platform for high-level discussions including all the different actors involved in EU-Turkey relations.

Welcome to the official website of the Friends of Turkey Group in the European Parliament.

In March 2010, members from the EPP, S&D, ALDE, Greens/EFA and ECR groups founded the “Friends of Turkey” group in the European Parliament. Seventy-seven MEPs joined and were active members during the 7th legislative term (2009-2014). Mr Alojz Peterle (EPP) was elected as chairman of the group.

In September 2014, the group was successfully re-launched. Artis Pabriks (EPP) and Ismail Ertug (S&D) became the new co-chairs.

The main objective of the informal group is to closely monitor EU accession negotiations with Turkey from a critical but constructive approach. Friends of Turkey is conceived as a platform for discussion where MEPs can contribute to the improvement of EU-Turkey relations.

As a cross-party informal group, Friends of Turkey has successfully positioned itself at the core of the debate on EU-Turkey negotiations. The group organizes formal and informal meetings with European and Turkish officials and it has served as a platform for high-level discussions including all the different actors involved in EU-Turkey relations.